After dinner, they walked along the beach together for a while. They carried their shoes and moved slowly, chatting about art, music, and food. Laughter came easily between them, and Carly felt completely relaxed. The sun set while they walked, and they turned back toward the restaurant parking lot and the Ford.

This time, after Donovan lifted her into the truck, his hand moved to her thigh and gave a little squeeze. He smiled and winked at her before closing the door. Carly felt a thrill of excitement.

The ride back to the cottage seemed to go faster than it had in the opposite direction. Carly was more at ease. She kept her shoes off and leaned her head back in the seat.

“Do you want to come in for a little while?” Carly asked Donovan once he’d lifted her down onto the driveway.

“Yeah, I do.”

Her pulse quickened again, but Carly didn’t have any regrets about asking him in. In fact, she felt eager about the possibilities. She didn’t have time to consider how out of character this was for her. She was the girl who played everything safe. She let Penny be the wild one while she stood on the sidelines and secretly wished she had more guts.

Not this time. She wasn’t going to let this gorgeous man just walk back over to his cottage alone after the lovely evening they’d had.

She flipped the lights on in the cottage and put her purse on the counter. “Would you like some wine?”

“Sure.” Donovan moved into the living room and looked around. “This cottage is nice. Mine is pretty similar. They must have all been built by the same contractor.”

Carly got the bottle of Riesling out of the refrigerator and opened it. She poured two glasses and handed one to Donovan. “I didn’t give it time to air,” she apologized.

Donovan shrugged. “I never stand on wine-related ceremony,” he said. “In fact, my mom always chills her Merlot, and I’ve taken a liking to it that way.”

Carly put her hand on her chest and plastered a dramatic shocked look on her face. “The scandal!” she cried, and they both laughed.

“I wonder if the stars are out.” Carly crossed to open the French doors. “Let’s go on the deck and see. I’ll leave the light off.” Donovan followed her out, and they leaned on the railing, their shoulders touching.

“It’s perfect here,” Carly said softly. She truly felt more peaceful and at ease than she could remember being in years.

“It sure is,” Donovan answered, and Carly realized he was staring at her instead of the sky or the water. She met his gaze, and he leaned toward her. She met him halfway, and their lips touched gently. The kiss sent a wave of joy through her, followed quickly by a crest of desire. She turned toward him to get a better angle, and he leaned closer and deepened the kiss. His left hand moved behind her head, and she caught her breath. He was so damn sexy.

She tore her mouth from his. Her heart pounded, and as she looked into his eyes, she thought maybe they should slow down. Play it safe. But when she spoke, that wasn’t what came out. Instead, she spoke the words her heart was shouting at her. “Let’s go inside.”

A slow grin spread across Donovan’s face, and he nodded, gesturing for her to go first. As soon as they were inside and the French doors were closed behind them, they came together again, kissing each other hungrily.

“Oops!” Carly stepped back reluctantly. “My wine is sloshing. Here, let me have yours too.” She took both glasses to the kitchen, set them down, and then turned to face Donovan again, leaning her elbows back on the counter. She smiled and resisted the urge to rush back into his arms. She still wanted to follow her heart, which was screaming at her to move forward, but old habits die hard. Her head was trying to put the brakes on the whole experience.

“You want to slow down?” Donovan guessed.

“No,” Carly said quickly. “I mean yes. No.” She giggled. “I really, really want to do this,” she said. “But I just wonder if it’s a good idea. I mean, how will we feel about it tomorrow? Maybe we should take it slower?” She hoped he’d walk forward, take her into his arms, and carry her off to the bedroom. She resolved that, if he did, she’d allow herself to be swept off into the moment and not worry about being serious. She’d let loose, have some fun, and forget about everything else for the night.

But he didn’t move toward her. Instead, he cocked his head slightly to the side and studied her, his forehead creased in the center. He didn’t speak right away, and Carly stopped breathing. Then his forehead smoothed out and he grinned.

He took a step toward her and she breathed again, but then he stopped. “I think we should have a beach fling.” He took another step forward. “Six days of passion. I’ll make sure you have a wonderful time—wining, dining, and having fun in the sun. We don’t talk about work, family, responsibilities, or anything other than each other and this week. We live in the moment. And when it’s over, it’s over. We go back to our regular lives.” One more step. “Everyone should have a crazy, beautiful beach fling once in their life. To look back on and smile over at eighty years old.”

Carly was breathing fast. What he proposed was like nothing she’d ever imagined herself doing. It wasn’t her style. She liked to play it safe, stay steady, and watch her p’s and q’s. But oh, how she yearned to have an experience just like the one he described. Six days of sex, laughter, and pure fun with a gorgeous man, no strings attached. When it was over, she could focus on her career. How could she say no?

She couldn’t.  “Yes. Let’s do it.”

He was on her before the last word was out of her mouth. He kissed her hungrily, and his hands roamed down her hips and back up again, passing by them to brush the sides of her breasts and then run down her back, where they stopped and pulled her closer.

Carly wrapped her arms around Donovan and pulled his chest closer while she pushed her breasts into him. Her erect nipples could feel his hard chest through their clothes. She met his mouth kiss for kiss, adding her own passion to his in an ever-growing wave that rolled over them both. Soon, their hands and mouths were everywhere, and wherever Donovan touched her, Carly’s skin responded with warmth. She felt like she couldn’t get close enough to him.

“Let’s go to the bedroom,” she whispered in his ear.

“Lead the way,” he said, his voice gruff.

It was hard to part from Donovan long enough to lead him down the short hallway to the bed she’d slept in the night before. As soon as they got there, she turned and launched herself toward him again. She pressed her hips into him and felt his hardness through the two thin layers of their clothes. This time, when his hands traveled down Carly’s body and reached her thighs, they brought her dress back up her body with them, lifting it over her head and dropping it on the floor.

She reached back and unhooked her bra and let that fall off too and then pushed her panties off and took a step back. Donovan reached into his back pocket, removed his wallet, and set it on the end table before he took his clothes off and got into the bed, beckoning her to join him.

She felt a flash of nerves as she climbed under the sheets. He reached for her, pulled her down on top of his body, and kissed her again. It was quite clear from the hard length pressed into Carly’s lower belly that Donovan wanted her, and the butterflies fluttered out of her stomach, leaving only pure desire behind. She dove into his arms and gave herself over completely to living in the moment and feeling everything she could about the experience.

Donovan’s hands and mouth seemed like they were everywhere at once, making Carly believe he couldn’t wait to explore every inch of her body. She knew the feeling. Her hands roamed over his arms and sides, and she was frustrated she couldn’t touch his backside because she was on top. She tipped a bit onto her side. Her hands found his cock, and then she wasn’t even a tiny bit disappointed about not having access to his back anymore.

Donovan throbbed in her hands, and he moaned and pushed further into them. Carly stroked him a few times, reveling in his response. She watched his gorgeous face as he closed his eyes and tipped his head back, enjoying her ability to bring a look of ecstasy to it.

Suddenly, he reached toward his wallet, fumbled it open, and withdrew a condom. He tore it open and she moved her hands to let him put it on. He opened his eyes, looked into hers, and then used a hand on the back of her neck to pull her mouth to his. Their tongues danced together perfectly, like they’d done it before, and Carly couldn’t wait another second to feel Donovan inside her.

She climbed on top again and reached down to guide him in. She was more than ready to accept him, and the instant his tip slid into her, she gasped in pleasure and slid down to cover his whole length. His hips rose to meet her, and Donovan buried his face in her shoulder, using his hands to pull her lower back even closer to him.

Carly sat up a little and began to move cautiously up and down. His hands found her breasts and teased her nipples erect, which felt so blissful, she moved faster. When Donovan kept his left hand on her right breast but moved his right hand down to find her clit, she cried out. He stroked in time with her movements. She arched her back so she could feel as much of him inside her as possible while also pushing herself further toward his fingers.

And then Carly was riding on instinct. She didn’t know where her body ended and his began—everything in her world was pure color and sound and ecstasy, and when she reached her peak and tumbled over it, Donovan did too. When Carly heard him call her name, she exploded in a quake that threatened to break her into a thousand pieces, all resonating to his wave length.

Carly collapsed on top of Donovan, keeping him inside her while tremors continued to squeeze him. He wrapped both hands in her hair and drew close, kissing her neck and murmuring words she couldn’t understand.

When her heart slowed enough that it no longer felt like it might burst, she rolled off of him. He watched her go, a small smile on his lips, and she saw he was breathing hard just like her. “That was amazing,” he panted.

“I think I almost died,” she affirmed. She propped herself on an elbow. “When can we do it again?”

Donovan laughed, and the sound made Carly’s heart sing. “Give me a few minutes.” Then he rolled onto his side to face her and kissed her softly. “Don’t worry,” he said. “We have six days to fully ravage each other as often as we want. And, oh, how I plan to ravage this perfect body of yours.”